How did Main Aur Charles happen?
5 years ago, Prawaal Raman (the director) came to me with a story where you had 3 different characters in the form of Charles. I simply told him, "We'll talk about this film the day you bring these 3 characters into one actor." He saw sense in what I said, worked on the story and then brought it to me again.
At that point of time, Prawaal and I were both going through a low phase, so it took us time to find a producer. Many writers, directors, actors and producers have tried to make a film on Charles Sobhraj, but failed because they're trying to make a movie on his life, which is more like a miniseries like Game Of Thrones or House Of Cards. But Prawaal made a film on a man who escaped from the prison that has the maximum security- Tihar Jail.
What was your reaction when you heard the script?
I had heard of Charles Sobhraj- how he is dangerous and smart. Articles regarding him would be printed in papers and all the people in my family used to talk about him. Honestly, I never thought that I will get a chance to play him someday.
Tell us about your preparation for the role.
As it is a real life character, the difficult part is the language and understanding the mindset of Charles. Whomsoever we asked about him, had his/her own version of the man. So we had to spend a lot of time understanding what this person is really all about. I read extensively about him, saw a lot of documentaries and read lots of newspaper articles as a part of my preparation.
How was it working with Richa Chadda?
Richa and I have great chemistry on and off sets. She is an attractive woman. It's always easy to have a good equation with an attractive woman. On top of it, she is a good actor.
If a film does well, I will get another good film. If it doesn't, I'll have to struggle a bit more and look for another film--- but I am sure I will get it because I have a good reputation now. Getting work is not an issue, but getting work which I want to do is the question right now. I did Charles right after Highway, even before doing Kick. If it would have released immediately after Highway, it would have been a different story. But these things are not in my hands.
Have you become more cautious in choosing scripts?
I've made so many mistakes, but I'm still here. So I don't think that you make one mistake and you are out of industry. Similarly, it's not that if you deliver one hit, your career will go on forever. I am an artiste and I am loyal towards my art, so I don't fear anything.
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